Support of Midwives to Help Enhance Couple’s Sense of Parenting Collaboration

Abstract

This qualitative descriptive study aimed to clarify the support required from practicing midwives to enhance the sense of joint child rearing among couples. After conducting semi-structured interviews with three practicing midwives in the Kanto area, it was established that they built relationships of trust through comprehensive support for couples and continuous involvement with them. They became a source of support, by providing empathy for the wives’ emotional and physical difficulties, and exploring support methods that suit the couple. In addition to becoming a coordinator for the couple, they communicate the importance of expressing one’s feelings within a marriage (specifically assisting husbands to express their expectations), and praising the couple for their growth and involvement. They provided support for new parents through prenatal checkups, childbirth, and child-rearing guidance, particularly when husbands found it challenging to be present to experience the growth of their children. They nurtured preparedness.